EVERY FAMILY in Barbados is looking for day care, says Minister of Family Youth Affairs, Sports and the Environment Dr Esther Byer-Suckoo. And the minister is challenging corporate Barbados to join with Government to provide the facilities.

She said the 15 Government day-care centres were in great demand and there were 2 000 children on a waiting list that might very well go on to school before a space opened up. In addition, she said, the centres were in need of maintenance.

More day-care centres were needed in central locations to make things less stressful for parents, Byer-Suckoo said as she addressed child-care officials and the media at the launch of Child Month, at the Child Care Board, The City, earlier this week.

"Those 15 day-care centres are hardly able to accommodate the little ones. There is hardly a home in Barbados now where a parent can stay home and manage a child, so every family now is looking for day care.

"We [would] like to see more day-care centres at the workplace and we are calling on corporate Barbados; and Government also needs to take up that challenge to provide day-care facilities according to the protocols established by the Child Care Board.

"When you have more comfort and ease in finding day-care centres, that helps to take a big burden off. The time has come . . . this is a timely intervention," she said, adding that it was a big concern to all employees.

"Between 3 p.m. and 5 p.m. parenting happens by telephone and cellphone, which is not an ideal situation, one many parents are not comfortable with. They would like to do things differently.

"Taking that stress off an employee improves productivity . . . All the logistics can be worked out," she said.

Byer-Suckoo said day-care centres were especially needed at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital and the Government office complex in Warrens, St Michael.

The theme for child month is Children Live What They Learn: Families Play Your Part.